


Ceramic Birds

by 3DBABE1999



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-11
Updated: 2018-11-11
Packaged: 2019-08-22 07:53:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,602
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16593857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/3DBABE1999/pseuds/3DBABE1999
Summary: SUMMARY: Stiles brings Derek a Housewarming Gift.





	Ceramic Birds

Ceramic Birds.

WARNINGS: Foul Language in the story and the Author's Notes.. Sex.. Stiles and Derek have an age difference and Stiles isn't exactly legal when they start dating but no sex happens between them until Stiles is over eighteen.. NO NOGITSUNE!!!!!!! .. Peter being Peter but we love him anyway so he can stay..

This takes place around the time Derek first gets "the loft".. Except there's no missing Boyd and Erica.. No Alpha Pack.. No Darach (okay.. well.. maybe a MINOR ultra *tiny* brush with Jennifer Blake (AKA: Julia Baccari, AKA: The Darach.. But it's like so very, very, very minor and then *POOF* she's gone and never really mentioned again, what happens to her can be left to the reader's imagination but she ain't gonna be invading Stiles' and Derek's happy after she *poofs* out of the picture.. Like literally Jennifer/Julia/Darach only gets a pretty minor mention and she is never heard of or from again in this).. NO NOGITSUNE.. Derek DOES NOT LOSE HIS ALPHA POWERS .. Just some cute, tooth rottingly sweet fluffy feels because Derek Hale deserves nice things, damn it.. and so does Stiles.. I know it isn't Canon Compliant.. I also don't care.. everyone we love lives, no one we love dies (evil assholes like Kate, Victoria and Gerard can be considered dead and staying dead though).. Scott's head is still too far up Allison's cute posterior to really notice a lot of things, but he's a hormonal teenage Werewolf with a forbidden fruit love right within his reach, so what can I really do?, Scott's not a bad friend but he also really, really is, he just doesn't mean to be or really understand that, yes, yes, he is a shit friend at times.. But we'll forgive him because Stiles forgives him.. Papa Stilinski thinks he has a clue, but he really, really doesn't.. Papa Stilinski seriously needs to learn better parenting skills.. but it's all good.. Everybody makes mistakes, nobody is perfect and yes, yes, we all do have to love Stiles' dad even when he's completely oblivious.. Melissa McCall is and always will be one of my most favorite Characters of all times and she will be the best, non-judgemental, HERO to have ever HEROED, okay? (I.E. .. It is always.. ALWAYS.. A good idea to become BFF's with a nurse of Melissa's calliber and discretion because they KNOW A LOT and can always help one figure out the right.. erm.. supplies.. if one were to need certain kinds of supplies.. a non-judgemental nurse, who only wants your safety and happiness and who will be DISCRETE and tell it like it is, is always a great person to talk to.. and get information and certain supplies from (if and/or when certain supplies are needed) just sayin..) .. Nothing.. And I mean NOTHING.. Happens before Stiles and Derek are BOTH ready.. they are BOTH on board and on the exact same page, in the same paragraph and at the same word of the same sentence when things DO happen .. And it will be a little awkward and fumbling and adorable along the way.. but they're nervous and they can't see past the heart eyes.. Not really slow burn at all.. more of an "oops we're totally crushing on each other and we just now noticed this.." then an "oh, well, what d'ya know?.. we're actually totally, head over heels with each other.. how did it take us this long to figure it out?" .. and then an "um.. so who gets to be the one to tell everybody we're getting married?".. Just read it, trust me.. Your teeth will rot and fall out from all of the sweetness.. I needed happy things because the real world sucks right now.. Like for real.. this is rainbows, sunshine, happiness, sweetness, fluffy puppies, fluffy kittens, fluffy baby bunnies, fluffy feels, nothing but good and happy things to be found here.. Even PETER gets to have nice things.. Okay?

I got the idea for this Fic from some of the only actually good childhood memories I have.. My mom collected tons of Ceramic Resin Bird Figurines and I loved just sitting by the shelf rearranging them to match them up with their opposite sex counterparts and I would play games like the Cardinals ruled the Kingdom and the Blue Jays were the Prince and Princess, Sparrows, were Peasants, Quails were the Royal Guards and Finches were Nobility.. I played other little imaginary games with them too... except there was this ONE, MALE bird Figurine that didn't have a Mate at all and I always begged my mom to find another one because "he was lonely" (I was like FOUR at the time.. Okay?).. Then one day we found a Ceramic Resin Bird Figurine that was the same Species as the one loner AND it was in a different pose and everything.. But.. It was ALSO Male, so we wound up with two Male Bird Figurens of the same Species.. But I was all like "That's okay, they can love each other and be together anyway", so they always wound up paired together on the shelf whenever I played with them, we did eventually find a Female, but that meant that once again there'd be a bird that was alone, so I begged my mom not to get it because that would ruin everything and we didn't need her (again I was FOUR and I was convinced that the two Males Bird Figurines were perfectly happy together and that trying to fit a female in with them would mean breaking up the two very happy with and in their relationship males and ruining everything so I was very strongly adament that my mom should not buy the female even though buying it would mean completeing her current very hard to find all of the pieces for) set of figurines (apparently the second Male that we found of that one Species was actually part of a different set by the same makers..) I didn't care, to me the two males were happy together and that was that.. so when my mom started adding new birds from other sets they all had to come with their own Mates so that they didn't mess with or up any of the relationships that had already been paired up or else I would become a very upset Pre-Schooler).. Unfortunately the actual Species of the two male bird figurines doesn't fit with some of the aspects of the story that I want to feature, such as it was a Species of bird that doesn't Mate For Life and I wanted a Species of bird that Mates For Life.. And I also wanted to use a Species of bird that Mates For Life AND has also been documented as having same-sex pairings.. And then I found THE PERFECT BIRD SPECIES of bird to depict as the Figurines in this story, but the only documented same-sex pairings with this particular Species so far have been female-female pairings.. And I was like.. It still works for the plot..

~0~

It was depressing..

Gray..

Really poorly lit despite the big ass window that almost took up a whole wall..

Gloomy..

Mostly empty..

But it had potential..

And Stiles could see that Derek really was trying..

And.. Well.. Everyone has to start somewhere.. Right?

Stiles stood in the open doorway of Derek's loft holding a giftwrapped box and staring at the hole in the wall of Derek's loft..

Derek peaked out of the hole, apparently there was a whole nother room (or maybe even more?) back behind that wall..

"What are you doing here, Stiles?" Derek's sighed out words sounded tired, frustrated, a little annoyed and a lot grumpy..

But grumpy was practically Derek's default setting, so Stiles wasn't too worried about Derek's seemingly sour mood..

"Oh.. I.. Uh.. Brought you something.." Stiles replied as he carefully held out the giftwrapped box.

Derek stepped though the hole in the wall and started dusting himself off, even after all of the wall residue that came off of him, Derek was still covered in dust and grime...

"Dude, I hope the walls of this place aren't full of like Anthrax or something.."

"You mean Asbestos.. They're not, I checked.. And don't call me dude." Derek grouched as he walked over and took the box from Stiles' outstretched hand.

Derek lifted the box to his ear and almost started to shake it but Stiles' indignant shout of "Dude, DON'T!. It's breakable!" made Derek freeze and slowly lower the box.

Derek stood there staring at the still wrapped box and after a couple of beats Derek asked "What is it?" sounding suspicious and not even looking up like he was just waiting for something rabid to pop out of the box and attack his face..

"It's.. Uh.. A.. Housewarming gift?" Stiles replied with a lilt at the end like he wasn't sure if he was answering or asking.. "Ugh.. Forget it.." Stiles stated as he snatched the box back from Derek's hand.. "It's stupid.. You won't even like it.. I should have picked something else.."

"Give it.." Derek reached to grab the box.. But Stiles interrupted him mid-sentence by stepping back and holding the box back out of reach.."No.. I'll just find something else to get you.."

"What is it?" Derek asked, actually sounding curious "Is it a scented candle? Cuz if it is, so help me god, Stiles.."

"No!.. It is not a scented candle!.. Dude.. I may be pretty socially inept but even I know that getting another guy a scented candle is a no go..It's just.. This gift actually means something to me.. And now that I think about it.. I know you'll hate it and you'll probably wanna kill me if I let you open it.. Because you might think it's girly.. But it's really not I swear.."

Derek dodged around Stiles and grabbed the box and started pulling at the gift paper..

"Wait!" Stiles exclaimed.. "Ya gotta promise not to kill me first.."

Derek's only reply was the raise of one bushy eyebrow and then he continued to pull off the wrapping paper.

"Just.. Uh.. Just so ya know.." Stiles stammered out nervously as the finally piece of paper fell away (Stiles may have gone a *tiny* bit overboard on paper use and the gift may have looked like it was wrapped by a two-year-old.. but he had been nervous).. Stiles took a deep breath as Derek started working the tape off of the top of the box.. Stiles put a hand over the top of Derek's, stilling Derek's movements, Stiles knew he was risking getting his arm torn off for just touching a grumpy Alpha Werewolf.. But.. oh well?.. "This gift.. It was mine for a really long time.. Ever since my mom died.." Stiles stated with a nod as he removed his hand and allowed Derek to finish working the tape off the box..

"It used to be my mom's" Stiles rushed to say as Derek finally got the box open and started to pull out what was inside "So.. Uh.. Just.. Gentle.. Okay?.. Breakable.. Remember?"

Derek pulled out a Ceramic Bird that could fit perfectly in the palm of his hand..

"Easy.." Stiles reached out his hands like a nervous parent letting someone else hold their newborn for the first time..

"Relax, Stiles.. I'm not gonna let it break.." Derek huffed as he examined the figurine.. It was a black and white bird and it looked like it was a type of bird that could be found near an Ocean..

"So.. What does it mean?" Derek asked, causing Stiles to give a startled little jump..

"Huh?"

 

"You said this gift meant something to you?.. So.. What does it mean?.. Is it just cause it used to be your mom's?"

"Oh!.. Uh.. Well.. The fact that it used to be my mom's is part of it, yeah.."

"And?.. The rest of it?"

"Do.. Uh.. Do I have to tell you?.. It's kind of embarrassing now that I think about it.."

"Stiles.." Derek gave an annoyed huff..

"Okay, okay.." Stiles held up his hands in surrender "First off.. Well.. I noticed that you didn't really have a whole lot of stuff to make this place feel like a home.." Stiles felt like a moron and an asshole as soon as he said it..

Derek just raised "the eyebrow of doom" again and looked like he expected Stiles to continue and that it better be good or there may be some maiming involved..

"And.. I.. kn.. kn.. know.. wh.. wh.. why that is.." Stiles gave an audible gulp "And.. I wanted to give you something that would help make this place feel even just a little bit like home for you.. But.. I couldn't think of anything that might actually mean "home" for you.. SO I gave you a little something that means home for me.. A little piece of my home.. to give you for your home.. And It's stupid and I'm sorry.. and if you hate it, I can just take it back.."

Stiles may have been imagining it, but he could swear that Derek actually pulled the little bird close to his chest like the thing would have to be pried from his cold dead hands..

"That's not all it means to you, is it?" Derek asked.

"Uh.." Stiles snorted out a chuckle "No.. There's more.. It's kind of a long story?"

Derek made a motion with his free hand for Stiles to continue..

"Okay.." Stiles replied "Sssooo.. My mom collected these Ceramic Birds.. Well.. Ceramic Resin.. But.. Anyway.. She collected these little bird figurines ever since she was younger.. She had tons of them by the time I was born.. Like literally tons.. Anyway.. She always kept her collection on this one shelf and when I was like three or so, I started playing with them like they were toys, because, well, I thought they were.. And my mom.. At first she freaked out because she thought I'd break one, but then she started watching how I played with them.. How imaginative I was being.. And that I was also being careful with them because I actually valued them.. So she let me keep playing with them.. I'd play games where I made up fantasy kingdoms and the two Red Cardinals were the King and Queen and the two Blue Jays were the Prince and Princess.. There were only two of each bird Species, one Male, one Female for each bird Species.. And I always liked pairing them up together with their Mates and if someone else like put the male Blue Jay with the Female Cardinal, I would flip out because the Cardinals belonged together with each other and the Blue Jays belonged together with each other and so on, and so on.. But the bird you're holding.. Well.. She's always been the one loner because mom could never find the Mate to it before she died.. If she had it would have finally completed the set.. But that.. Isn't the reason I'm giving it to you.. I wanted to give her to you because she reminded me of you in a lot of ways.. She was always the outcast.. Always the loner.. And the real rub of it is.. Is she's an Albatross.. A Layson Albatross, in fact.. Anyway.. The reason why the fact that she's an Albatross is such a rub.. Is that some sailors used to think that an Albatross was bad luck and there's this story of a sailor bringing a wounded Albatross on a ship and a whole bunch of bad stuff happens and the other sailors blame the Albatross because literally everyone knows an Albatross is bad luck and they all wanted to get rid of the Albatross no matter how the man who brought it on board begged them to leave the poor bird alone and let it be allowed to heal.. Well... They cast the wounded Albatross out and because it couldn't fly, it died.. And after that, things REALLY started going bad for the sailors, WORSE than they had been going before and the man who had brought the wounded Albatross on board with him told them that the Albatross hadn't been bringing the ship bad luck, it had actually been bringing the ship good luck and casting it out and letting it die had allowed the real bad luck, that the Albatross had been keeping at bay all along, to befall them.. Or at least that's how my mom told it.. Anyway.. I know that sometimes you feel like you bring nothing but bad luck to everyone around you and with Erica and Boyd leaving The Pack then coming back, toying with it like it's a game and Scott still not wanting to join, I know sometimes you feel like everyone is trying to cast you out without caring if you live or die.. But.. Um.. Not me.. Okay?.. I care.. I kinda like having you around.. And if Scotty didn't always have his head so far up Allison's butt all the time, he'd see that you actually keep us out of trouble more than you actually get us into trouble.. Kinda like the Albatross.. You're actually Good Luck to have around and it would be a big mistake to just toss you away.. Anyway.. Another really cool fact about the Layson Albatross, is that they Mate For Life.. And well.. Wolves also Mate For Life.. So if Werewolves are anything like real wolves in that aspect then that'd be another thing you've got in common with her .. But like I said.. If you don't want to keep her.. I can take her back and get you something else.."

Again, it was like Derek pulled the little bird close to his chest.. "No.. It's.. Nice.. It's a really good gift, Stiles.. Thank you.."

"Oh wow.. The big bad Alpha actually said thank you." Stiles knew that his ribbing the Alpha Werewolf had broken the tender moment, as Derek rolled his eyes, but Stiles needed to get back to the safer waters of hiding his nervousness beneath sarcastic remarks and teasing banter..

"Well.. I.. Uh... I guess I better go?.." Stiles didn't know if he was asking or telling... He was kind of hoping that Derek would pick up on the hint and ask him to stick around.. but at the same time he felt awkward and didn't want to overstay his welcome.. But then again.. He was Stiles Stilinski.. He didn't know how to quit, wouldn't know how to quit while he was ahead.. "Unnnllllessss.. You have any work around here that you could use my help on?"

Derek looked around and took stock of the loft.. "Uh.. I guess you could help clear up this pile of rubble from when I knocked the wall down.."

Derek made his way over to the nightstand by his bed and gently sat the little Ceramic Bird that Stiles had given him on top of it..

"Why did you knock the wall down anyway?" Stiles' curious voice made Derek turn around..

Stiles was peaking curiously through the hole the wall..

"I wanted to open the place up a bit.."

"A bit?.. Dude, there's like a whole football stadium on the other side of this wall!... Just how big IS this loft?"

"Just help clean up the rubble.." Derek replied with an annoyed huff.. "And don't call me dude.."

Later that night, hours after Stiles had gone home, Derek finally laid down in his bed to go to sleep.. He looked over at the nightstand at the little Ceramic Bird and caught himself staring at the little figurine with a fond, dopey grin on his face.. Stiles might be awkward and clumsy and he might poke fun at Derek, a lot.. But he had a good heart and it was a nice gift and it really did mean a lot to Derek, doubly so, especially knowing that it had belonged to Stiles' mom and knowing how hard it must have been for him to part with it, yet Stiles had given it to him anyway to try to help him feel at home in his new place.. It was really.. Sweet?.. Derek ended up staring at the little Ceramic Bird until he fell asleep.. and he still had that fond, dopey grin on his face as he finally nodded off..

~0~

Sometimes Derek would catch himself looking at the little Ceramic Bird thinking.. "I should get.." and then proceed to fill in the blank with copius amounts of stuff that would make his loft feel more like a home..

He wound up with a big fluffy faux fur rug by his bed.. The floor was a little bit chilly in the morning.. So what?.. The softess, silkiest, most luxurious bed sheets, he could fine.. He liked how they felt against his skin.. Again.. So what?.. Dishes, Pots, Pans, Utensils, Silverware.. Like literally every sort of Counter Top Kitchen Appliance that had ever been made... Okay.. Maybe not.. but it felt like it.. And he definitely wound up with more Kitchen Appliances than he had plug-ins, counter space and cabinet space for.. So that extra space he had been opening up in the loft ended up becoming the Staging Grounds for a new kitchen.. With more cabinets, more counter space and more plug-ins.. While the old kitchen would be getting torn out and made into a Master Bath with a huge tub that had massaging whirpool jets.. He sometimes had sore muscles after a hard days work of renovating and remodeling.. So what?!.. So what if Derek was maybe going a little bit overboard and making his loft into more than just a home but into his DEN?!.. And so what if he made the space on the second floor into a room that could maybe one day be used for a nursery?.. Yeah.. Yeah.. He didn't have a Mate.. He knew that, thank you very much!!

Sometimes Derek thought that maybe he was "nesting" and then he would look at the little Ceramic Albatross and chuckle at the irony..

Once, while Derek was out getting even more stuff for his loft, he met this woman.. She was pretty and nice and they went on a date.. And Derek thought that maybe he could really like her..

He had almost ended up sleeping with her.. And then he had caught a whiff of an unmistakable brand of Ozone and suddenly it became clear.. Jennifer was trying to use some kind of magic-mumbo-jumbo to work him over.. She was trying to manipulate him into falling for her.. Derek didn't take too kindly to that.. Especially not after what Kate had done to him.. He didn't kill her.. But she had definitely been afraid for her life when she had made a mad dash to run for the hills with her metaphorical tail between her legs..

Derek didn't understand why Jennifer's magic hadn't been able to fully take root and effect him completely.. He figured that maybe it had to do with the fact that he was an Alpha.. Whatever the reason was.. it had seemed like something had been keeping him from being completely pulled under by Jennifer's spell, like there was something protecting him from that particular type of magic and Derek was grateful to whatever that something was..

After almost being used for whatever that evil witches purposes had been, Derek became majorly depressed and he began to lay off of his rapid renovations of the loft..

A couple of days after Derek had chased Jennifer away (literally), he got a knock on his door.. Before he had a chance to answer, his door was being slid open to reveal an annoying sixteen-year-old that he didn't want to be dealing with right now..

"Go away, Stiles.." Derek groaned in annoyed frustration from his place on one of the three couches that were now taking up half of what he had been trying to turn into the loft's living room.

"Ooookkkaaayyyy.." Stiles trailed off as his shocked eyes took in the mess that the loft was in.. there were, sinks, counters, toilets (brand new ones that had never been used, honest!), refrigerators, cabinet doors that were all made with different types of wood, countertops, each one made out of a different material, some were wood, one was marbel, one was granite and another one was limestone, flooring tiles, none of which matched.. it was all just.. Everywhere.. And then there was the three couches.. One had leather upholstery, another was upholstered with cotton fabric and the other one looked like it was Micro-Fiber..

"Why does it look like you robbed at least six home improvement stores and at least..." - Stiles cut himself off and looked around at the four different king sized mattress-slash-box springs sets that were propped against the wall, the three dishwashers and the five washer-slash-dryer sets, then he continued - .. "two furniture stores..?" 

"I was trying to make this place feel more.. like.. home.." Derek grumbled out the admission in a way that said that he realy didn't want to talk too much about anything..

Stiles' eyes flitted around the room.. Then his eyes landed on a shelf that had been built in the corner by Derek's bed.. And the only thing on that shelf was the little Ceramic Bird Stiles had given him, like the shelf was a place of honor and that bird was the only thing that got to be there..

"Okay.." Stiles took a deep breath.. "That's.. It's.. I can tell you've done a lot of work on the place.. And it looks... Good.. I bet you're just getting overwhelmed and hung up on some of these things because it's all a hard choice to make and so you just ended up buying a little bit of.. well.. literally everything because you couldn't decide what out of each thing that you liked best.."

"Yeah.. Maybe.." Derek grudgingly confessed..

"Well.." Stiles grinned "Maybe you just need someone to bounce ideas off of.."

"I guess." Derek sighed.

"But first.. what you really need is a break.. Come on.. Let's get you out of the loft for a little while and once you come back you'll have a clearer head and a fresh perspective and it won't seem as tough to decide on some of this stuff as it does now.."

"Okay.. Sure.. Whatever.." Derek agreed hesitantly as he stood up and slipped his leather jacket on.

Derek realized he had been blindly following Stiles for about a block now.. "Where's your Jeep?" Derek asked.

"The purpose of this excercise is to get some fresh air.. That means walking Mister Sourwolf.. Besides.. I have a destination in mind.."

"Then where are we going?"

"Oh, now he asks where we're going!"

"Stiles."

"Relax.. We're almost there.."

Stiles took a turn into a, quite frankly, filthy, narrow, little alley..

"I swear to god, Stiles if someone jumps out and tries to stab us, I'm using you as a Human Shield.."

"Hardee, har, har.. No one's gonna try to stab us.. Just trust me on this, okay?"

As they walked further into the alley Derek had a sense of dread building up in the pit of his stomach and he couldn't help but muttering obscenities about Stiles under his breath when it looked as if they were coming to a square alcove at the end of the alley and there was nowhere else to go.. Derek felt like he had been bamboozeled..

"This.. Is the best kept secret in Beacon Hills." Stiles stated with a grin as he walked to the left of the square alcove and Derek suddenly realized that there was a door leading into whatever building was blocking the end of the alley.

Derek followed behind him because he had alredy come this far, but the sense of dread didn't lessen..

The door lead directly up a tall, narow flight of stairs that looked rickety as hell and like the weight of a feather would make a step fall through..

But the steps were holding Stiles' weight, so Derek followed, hoping that his being heavier than Stiles wouldn't make him go falling through the steps.

Derek winced every time a step creaked under his weight.

"This whole place is gonna fall apart around us." Derek griped.

Stiles scoffed "No it won't.. Dude, I've been coming here for YEARS.. This place is a lot sturdier than you think.."

"Tell that to the weak, creaky steps."

"The steps?" Stiles asked "Oh.. The creaking.. Yeah, they've been like that since I was little.. I used to try to hop on each place that creaked and try to make music as I went up or down the stairs.. I actually managed Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star once."

Derek didn't reply because he was too busy focusing on white knuckle griping the staircase railing as he climbed higher.

At about three floors up, the staircase ended at another door.. Stiles tapped on the door with his knuckles in a playful "knock.. knock.. knock.. knock... knock, knock." ..

The door swung open revealing a short, elderly woman..

"Stiles!" .. The little old woman exclaimed sounding happy and excited in a thickly accented voice..

"Magda!" Stiles exclaimed just as happily as the little old woman opened her arms and Stiles enveloped her and crushed her into a tight hug..

"Look at you, Kochany!.. Every time I see you nowadays, you've grown at least another foot!" The woman exclaimed as she squeezed Stiles back just as tight..

"And who is this?" The little old woman asked as she pulled out of the hug and looked over to Derek.

"This is Derek.. He's... Uh.. A friend.."

The little old woman leaned very closely into Derek's personal space and whispered conspiratoraly to him, "You must be very special, he's never brought anyone here with him before."

"Magda!" Stiles shouted indignantly as the little old woman stepped back.. She ignored Stiles' indignant shout completely..

"Well.. Come on in you two.." She stated as she opened her door wider and stepped back so that Stiles and Derek could enter.. "I'm Magda, by the way.." She introduced herself to Derek.

"Crap!" Stiles exclaimed.. "Sorry, Magda!.. I was just so excited to finally bring someone over that I forgot to actually properly introduce you!"

"No worries, Kochany." Then she leaned into Derek and whispered conspiratorily again "Between you and me, he's never had the best manners."

"Hey!" Stiles shouted after the little old woman went bustling towards the kitchen..

"I'll have lunch ready in about thirty minutes.." She shouted.

"Uh.. No.. Ma'am.. I.. Uh.. Couldn't possibly.." Derek started to stammer.. Now Stiles was the one raising an eyebrow at him, except Stiles had a smug grin on his face like he knew something Derek didn't..

"Nonsense!" The woman's voice shouted "You and Stiles are both thin enough as it is and I've never let a child go hungry on my watch and I never will!"..

"Ma'am.. I'm not a.. " Derek began to say..

"Sweetie... You're at least fifty years younger than me.. Trust me.. You're still just a kid.. And when you're in your seventies looking back on your twenties, even your later twenties.. You'll realise how right I am.. Anyone under thirty is still a child in my book because they're still way too naive about way too many things in life and in the world.. It's around thirty-years-old when a lot, not all, but a lot, of those childish naivetes finally start fading away and at thirty you'll find yourself looking back on twenty-eight realising that even just two years earlier you were still just a kid.. And don't even get me started on what you'll most likely be thinking when your FORTY looking back on twenty-eight... Because I can almost guarantee you that you'll be looking back at when you were twenty-eight thinking about how young and stupid you still were.." All of this was shouted from the kitchen as the sounds of pots and pans and utensils started banging and scraping around, the sounds of water filling a pot, the sounds of a skillet heating up.. The scraping of a wooden spoon on the inside of a plastic bowl, the sound of a collander being sat inside the empty kitchen sink..

"Magda, you should write a song!" Stiles' teasing shout, broke Derek out of his thoughts..

Magda chuckled at Stiles' comment..

"Magda is the BEST cook.." Stiles stated with a nod.. then he shouted agan.. "Magda!.. Can we eat up on the roof?!"

"I don't know.. What's the weather look like outside?" Magda asked.

'Bright and sunny!"

"And warm?" Magda asked.

"And warm." Stiles replied as he plopped down on Magda's sofa and picked up what Derek at first thought was a fuzzy throw pillow but instead turned out to be a not so happy elderly cat with such a quiet heartbeat that Derek almost couldn't hear it at all, even with his Wolf Senses.

"Who's my good boy?" Stiles cooed at the old cat.. The cat made a grumbling noise of discontent as Stiles cuddled him into his lap and started petting him.. The cat gave up the ghost and started purring within a few seconds, once the cat was content, his heartbeat sounded much stronger before quieting again.. Derek remembered reading somewhere that cats could basically go in and out of "Stasis Mode" where their heartbeats and breathing slowed and quieted, a throwback from their Wild Ancestors, for hunting or for hiding when they were Prey..

"He's just a grumpy old guss.. But once ya start petting him he becomes just a big ole' kitten." Stiles stated as he looked up like he could sense Derek staring at him.. "Come on.. Have a seat... The cat won't bite, I promise." Stiles patted the couch cushion next to him.

Derek took a seat, the cat grumbled and shifted but soon settled and started purring again..

Stiles quietly cooed to the cat some more and continued petting him.. "His name's Muffin." Stiles stated with a serious nod "He's real friendly. Wanna pet'im?"

Derek shook his head "No".. but a couple minutes later he had found that his hand had strayed over to scratch the cat's ear..

"He doesn't look like a muffin." Derek found himself trying to make small talk.. It felt awkward to be in the house of someone he didn't know.. It felt awkward to be sitting so close to Stiles, petting a cat that belonged to someone he didn't know.. He had to try to find something to talk about so that he could ease himself out of the awkward feeling.. Which in itself was awkward, because he normally wasn't very chatty..

Stiles looked down at the grey ball of fluff.. "Magda found him when he was just a kitten, he had gotten himself stuck half in and half out of a plastic muffin container, and since she didn't know he was a "He" at the time, cuz it's hard to tell the gender of a kitten when they're that little and covered in that much fluff, she ended up naming him Muffin... By the time Muffin was old enough to go to a Vet for the first time where Magda finally found out that Muffin was a boy, the name had already stuck.."

"Huh.." Derek replied with a quirk of his lips.. "I guess it kinda does suit him, after all.."

"Yes, it does.." Stiles baby talked to the cat as he shifted poor Muffin so that his head rested under Stiles' chin..

Muffin cracked open a multi-faceted green eye and peered at Derek grumpily as if to say "Save Me from this grabby-handed cuddle monster!"

Derek only gave a silent chuckle and looked back at the cat as if to say "Sorry kitty.. Better you than me.." but then suddenly the thought of Stiles cuddling HIM and not the cat gave Derek a warm, comforting, feeling of bliss.. Derek shook himself out of it wondering where THAT had come from.. The feeling was still there, just quieter and less.. Urgent?.. Demanding?..

Derek found himself unable to stop the soft smile that spread across his face.

"Aww.. Derek likes the kitty.." Stiles cooed at him when he looked up and saw Derek smiling..

Derek tried to put back on the surly frown that his face was well used to making by now.. but he couldn't.. The smile stayed..

"Oh wow.. Muffin seems to really make you happy.. " Stiles said thoughtfully as he watched Derek try and fail to stop smiling..

Stiles got up and disappeared into the kitchen where Magda was.. Derek didn't think to try to listen in on their conversation with his Wolf Hearing, that would be rude of him if he did.. he was pretty content to stay sitting on the couch petting Muffin, who, unlike most cats, actually liked getting his belly rubbed..

When Stiles came back into the livingroom he was carrying a basket that had a stack of plastic cups that had silverware in the top cup, a large plastic bowl that had a lid, a stack of plastic plates on top of the bowl, a smaller basket full of steaming hot braided loaves of bread that were stacked on top of the plates and a giant Mason Jar filled with what looked like juice of some kind. Magda was following closely behind Stiles and she was also carrying a basket, but hers was a closed picnic basket.

Derek stood and offered to take the basket that Magda was holding.

"Oh, no, dear, you're a guest!" Magda exclaimed.. "Come, follow us to the roof, Stiles is convinced you will absolutely love it up there."

Stiles wasn't wrong.. For a little old lady, Magda could work wonders..

The rooftop was covered in plant life and there was even a Koi Pond and a Fountain right in the middle of the rooftop garden, next to the Koi Pond and Fountain there was a nice sized Patio Table with enough seating for seven which Derek took to mean that Magda was used to having lots of people over. Derek looked around while Stiles and Magda set up the table. Lining the edges of the roof were several cats, all of them watching the activity in the Koi Pond with keen intrest.

"All of these lovely ladies are Muffin's girlfriends." Stiles stated, making Derek jump because he had been in such deep awe over the rooftop garden that Stiles had actually managed to surprise him.. Stiles made his way over to one of the cats, a Calico, and picked her up.. "This is Dot, she's sorta more mine than Magda's.."

"I'm the one who feeds her!" came Magda's shout from the table.

"I'm the one who found her!" Stiles shouted back, then he stuck out his tongue at her.

"Cheeky brat." Magda replied as she walked over to them and pinched Stiles on the cheek "See what I mean by him never having the best manners?"

"Yes, ma'am.." Derek laughed..

"Hey, no fair! No ganging up on me!" Stiles exclaimed with a pout.

"Come eat, you two, before it gets cold." Magda's accent lited happily as she guided Derek to the table like someone who loved playing Hostess to lots of people..

After Stiles and Derek were seated Magda remained standing.. She looked at Derek "Now fair warning, the food on this table is very hearty so be prepared to get a full tummy very quickly." she told Derek with a bright smile as she began to take the covers off of the food.

After all of the food was uncovered Magda took her seat.

Stiles saw Derek curiously surveying all of the food so he began pointing to various dishes "There's the appetizers, koreczki, pierogis and gołąbki the main dishes, baranina and łosoś, side dishes mizeria, kasza gryczana and pieczarki marynowane, the deserts, naleśniki and szarlotka and to drink we have kompot."

Stiles snickered at the look of confusion on Derek's face.

"It is Polish food." Magda stated with a laugh.

Stiles gave Derek a grin as he nodded and gestured at the food "Trust me on this, Magda makes the best food."

Derek gave Stiles a speculative look..

"Appetizers first." Magda said as she grabbed one of the dishes and served Derek some kind of dumpling and something that was definitely wrapped in cabbage along with cheeses, cherry tomatoe halves, mini pearl onions and pieces of smoked herring on skewers and then Magda served Stiles and herself the same things and then she poured the three of them what looked like fruit juice into their glasses.

"You may dine.." Magda said with a thick accent as she retook her seat.

The three sat and dined and Magda talked about all of the rooftop garden parties she had, had and how much she loved having guests over for meals, but by far her most favorite guest was Stiles.

"How did you meet Stiles?" Derek asked Magda.

"I delivered him." Magda replied

"Magda is a midwife." Stiles chimed in.. "See, when I was about four, I got mad at my mom and dad because they wouldn't let me have something I wanted really bad, I can't even remember what it was, now." Stiles laughed "Anyway, I was convinced that my parents didn't love me because they wouldn't let me have what I wanted and then I started thinking I was adopted or switched at birth or something so I got into my parents' important papers and found my Birth Certificate and saw that Magda was the one who supposedly delivered me and I looked her up in the phone book and then ran away to her address.."

"I opened the door to a tiny little boy with big doe eyes that was clutching a backpack, a pillow and a stuffed animal." Magda stated "He kept demanding that I tell him who his real parents were... I eventually got him to tell me his name and then I called his mother and father."

Stiles blushed bright red at that. "About a year after my mom died I started visiting Magda a lot.. It ended up becoming a regular thing.."

"And little Mischief is always welcome." Magda stated with a gentle smile.

"Little Mischief?" Derek asked..

"Uh.. Yeah.. My actual first name.. Mieczysław, was sort of hard for even me to pronounce when I was still little so any time I tried to say my actual first name it always came out as Mischief." Stiles looked bashful as he replied.

"It was a good thing that I recognized the last name Stilinski when litte Mieczysław told me his name was Mischief Stilinski." Magda said with a laugh.

Derek chuckled at that..

Magda served the deserts and Derek was in heaven because the deserts were perfectly satisfying to his his secret sweet-tooth.

By the time he had finished his desert, Derek felt so full that he could burst and that was saying something because it was a rare thing indeed that a Werewolf could honestly say that they were actually, completely full.

As Stiles and Derek were about to take their leave Magda gave Derek a big basket filled with cheeses, some sort of sausage jerky sticks, bread rolls and a large jar of the same kind of fruit juice they had, had to drink with their meal up on the roof .

Derek tried to gently refuse but Magda strongly insisted that Derek take the basket of food while reiterating what she had said earlier about not letting children go hungry on her watch and Derek couldn't refuse her after that, and Magda hadn't given just him a basket as minutes later she was giving the same sort of basket to Stiles.

After Stiles and Derek left Magda's, Derek had been just a little bit irritated at the fact that there was an entance into Magda's building that actually faced a busy street and that the stairs going out to the entrance were nowhere near as rickety, but Stiles had smiled sheepishly as he admitted that he liked the alley entrance because it felt like a secret door that only he knew about.

"She always does this." Stiles said as he gestured to the basket he was holding as he and Derek walked down the sidewalk "I used to try to bring the first few baskets she gave me back only for her to refill them with even more food, I ended up keeping the baskets because no matter how many she gives away she never seems to run out of baskets, so now I have a crap-ton of baskets at home."

Derek rolled his eyes as he tried and failed to keep from chuckling at that.

When they got back to Derek's loft, Derek took in the mess and realized that Stiles had been right, taking a break out of the loft had cleared his head enough for him to make decisions on some things and enough for him to ask for input on some of the other things he didn't think he could decide on right then.

"I think I'll go with the granite countertop and the pine cabinets." Derek said with a nod of his head.

"Rugged and mountain-lodgey, I like it." Stiles chimed in "You should go with the leather couch because if The Pack's over they might spill a drink or something and leather won't obsorb it like fabric would, you can just wipe the leather down while if the fabric gets spilled on it'll take a lot more work to get clean."

"Good idea." Derek agreed.

After a couple of hours of Derek and Siles working together, Derek had decided to go with a tile that was the same color of gray as the granite countertop and the most energy and water-usage efficient dish washer for the kitchen, along with the most water-usage efficient toilet, a pine cabinet and sand colored countertop and tiles for the bathroom and Stiles had ended up also suggesting that Derek go with the memory foam mattress set, so in the end Derek wound up not knowing what to do with the stuff that he wouldn't be using.

"You could donate it." Stiles suggested.

"Mmm.. Or I could split it up between Pack Members, maybe Erica, Isaac and Boyd might want it for when they all have their own places.." Derek said that as if he were simply thinking out loud.

"That's a really good idea." Stiles agreed "Hey.. Don't you, like, own this entire building?"

"Mm, hmm.." Derek hummed in affirmation.

"Maybe you could turn some of the other parts of the building into already furnished apartments for Packmates for when they stay over or if they want to live close to you when they turn eighteen?" Stiles suggested. "I mean, Isaac pretty much already lives with you more than half the time, after all.."

"I guess I could do that.." Derek replied with a nod..

So, for about three more hours Stiles and Derek cleaned out three other loft spaces that were only one floor down from Derek's Loft and once they had the spaces cleared out enough, Stiles and Derek moved the excess furniture, countertops, tiles, refrigerators, dishwashers, tubs and toilets into the now cleared out loft spaces, which got anything that wasn't actually needed in Derek's loft, out of Derek's loft.. Oddly enough there had been almost enough to pretty much completely furnish all three cleared out spaces once Derek started renovating those spaces as well..

"I should get home." Stiles eventually stated after he caught himself nodding off on Derek's new couch while looking through a book of flooring samples as Derek planned to change the flooring in the upstairs part of his loft and maybe even the living area as well..

Stiles stretched as he stood to go.. "You know.. You should turn at least one room of the building into like a Pack Cuddle Room with some of those really big cushions that are big enough to be a bed all strewn around on the floor so every one can puppy pile if they want or need to.."

"That sounds nice.. You can help me pick out fabric samples for the cushions tommorow.." Derek replied..

"Mmm.. Hmm.." Stiles agreed in a sleepy humm.. "Ooh.. And you should do a sunroom with a hot tub to help everybody relax after Full Moon nights.." Stiles suggested.

"A hot tub?.. Really?" Derek asked with a chuckle..

"Yep.. One with really nice massaging whirpool jets and everything.." Stiles said with a nod..

"I'll think about it.." Derek stated with a genuine laugh..

After Stiles went home, Derek started looking through the book of flooring samples that Stiles had been looking through and found that Stiles had put a bunch of different Post-It Notes on several different flooring samples which he guessed meant that Stiles had liked those samples the most so far..

Derek spent a little while lifting the Post-Its just enough to see the sample undreneath.. He found himself really liking the wood floorings that Stiles had marked..

The next day when Stiles showed up at Derek's loft he found that Derek had done a lot of work since he had left the night before..

Derek had gotten the most important bits of the bathroom installed (most likely thanks to Werewolf Strength because Stiles was sure that the tub Derek had installed alone would have required at least four or five regular Humans and probably also the use of some sort of fork-lift or pallet-jack) and had been working on putting down the flooring tiles when Stiles had arrived.

"The bathroom looks good.." Stiles stated as he poked his head into the room to see what all Derek had done. "I'm guessing the kitchen is next?"

"Yeah, I figured I would try to get both as done as possible because that way I don't have to turn the water off for this part of the building more than once.." Derek replied.

"So the water's off right now?" Stiles asked and when Derek nodded Stiles was like "So... How we gonna use the bathroom if we need to go?"

"We'll just use one of the bathrooms in one of the lofts downstairs."

"Perks of owning the building?.." Stiles asked with one eyebrow raised..

"Yep." Derek replied.

Stiles and Derek worked on tiling the bathroom in ammiable silence, and since Derek had Werewolf Speed and Strength it didn't take long. Once the room was tiled, Derek ordered pizza, breadsticks and soda and he and Stiles sat in the livingroom and ate and argued back and forth over which actor was the best Rhodey.. Stiles still wasn't over the Re-Casting of Rhodey, yeah Don Cheadle was a great actor, but Terrance Howard had just felt more genuine and then when the Re-Cast had happened it was like Tony and Rhodey no longer just "clicked", like it was forced like they were strangers when it was already pretty established in the first Iron Man that Tony and Rhodey were close before Tony was taken captive and then the Re-Cast made it as if Tony and Rhodey barely liked each other in the second Iron Man movie, but Derek liked Don Cheadle and thought he was a better War Machine than Terrance Howard would have been.. The two bickered back and forth for about an hour while Stiles "digested" and thumbed through a book of fabric samples to help Derek pick fabrics for the cushions that would go in the "Pack Cuddle Room" and then after a while, Derek declared it was time to get the kitchen "put together", so Stiles and Derek worked together getting the kitchen sink installed, then the dishwasher and the refridgerator with the built in ice maker, after the counters and cabinets were put in place, Derek and Stiles got to work tiling the floor and the back-splash above the counters, and once again, Derek's Werewolf Strength and Speed helped get each task done relatively quickly which meant that Derek was able to turn the water to his loft back on...

They got a lot done in just the few hours that Stiles was over, before Stiles had to call it a night and Derek felt happy that the loft was coming together and that it was starting to feel more and more like a place that he could call home..

With the kitchen and bathroom pretty much done aside from a few finishing touches, getting the rest of the rooms done would go swiftly.. The next day Stiles and Derek tackled the living room and the eating area, they put down one of the wood floors that Stiles had marked with a Post-It in the book of flooring samples and put together the dining table and chairs, and they also worked on installing lighting and ceiling fans..

By the end of the week pretty much the whole loft was done and Derek was ready to work on getting some of the other lofts remodeled for Isaac, Boyd and Erica for when they wanted to stay over or for when they just needed their own places.

Stiles became a pretty permanent fixture around Derek's Loft for the next few weeks and Derek found himself smiling more and talking more and laughing more and trusting more..

"I won't be able to come over so much anymore after next week." Stiles stated out of the blue one day while he and Derek were putting together the "Pack Cuddle Room".

Derek froze and looked at Stiles with his head tilted in confussion "Why?" he had asked grumpily..

"School starts back up next Thursday. I'll probably only be able to come over and help with this stuff on the weekends."..

"Oh.." Derek's reply sounded disappointed even to his own ears.

"Hey, I'll still be by pretty much every couple of days, I just won't be able to stay till after midnight like I've been doing, and I'll still be able to help out a lot on the weekends." Stiles said soothingly..

"Okay.." Derek said quietly and it was evident that he was sort of pouting..

The next day when Derek opened his door, Stiles wasn't alone..

"No.. Absolutely not" Derek said as he looked at the tiny ball of purring orange fluff that Stiles was holding..

"Me thinks Thou doest protest too much.." Stiles replied as he sashayed past Derek into the loft.. "I noticed how much you liked Muffin.. And well.. Dot was pregnant and Magda wanted to make sure the kittens went to a good home and I saw how Muffin made you smile so I asked her if you could have one of Dot's kittens when they were ready to be weened and everything and she said yes.."

"I thought Dot was pretty much more your cat than Magda's?" Derek asked, interrupting Stiles' rambling.

"Well, she is.. But Muffin is Magda's and he's the dad, therefore me and Magda have Joint Custody of the kittens Dot gave birth to, so I couldn't just abscond with a kitten without letting Magda know what kind of home it was going to." Stiles babbled out his explaination "And Magda really liked you, she wants me to bring you by again some time and she really liked the idea of you having one of the kittens that Muffin fathered, in fact when I asked her if you could have one of Dot's and Muffin's kittens, her exact words were "Of course! That sweet boy deserves to have nice things and you can't get much nicer than a cuddly kitten!".. And look, the kitten is very cuddly!" Stiles said as emphasis as he held the purring kitten out to Derek.

One look at the huge "Puss-In-Boots Eyes" and Derek was done for..

"Fine.." Derek groused as he took the kitten and cuddled it close to his chest.. "But I haven't got anything for it.. No food, no liter box.."

"All taken care of.." Stiles interrupted "I left it all down in my Jeep for just in case you really wouldn't take her.. But I had a feeling you would cave.."

"Wait.. Her?" Derek called after Stiles, but Stiles had already disappeared "She had better be already spayed!" Derek shouted.

When Stiles brought up the supplies for the kitten he found Derek sleeping on the couch with the kitten curled up on his chest..

Derek ended up being very thankful for the kitten, because with school being back in session, and Stiles not being able to come over as much, it would have been unbearably lonely without her..

When Stiles came over for the first time in nearly two weeks, the tiny ball of orange fluff tackled his shoe and Stiles had happily exlcaimed "Hey, sweetheart!" as he reached down to scoop her up.. the thing was.. Derek had, had his back turned, so for half an instant Derek had thought that Stiles had been talking to HIM, calling HIM sweetheart... and.. then he found himself actually sort of disappointed when he realized that Stiles had been talking to the kitten..

"So what'd'ya name this little princess?" Stiles asked as he scritched under the kitten's chin.

"Daisy.." Derek replied..

"It suits her." Stiles said with a grin as he lavished the kitten with petting and scritches.

Sometimes Isaac, and even Erica and Boyd would be in and out of the loft, giving compliments about the changes Derek had made or was making, to the loft and/or the rest of the building and sometimes they too would pitch in to help, but Derek found he actually liked working with Stiles better and Derek eventually realized that he missed Stiles whenever Stiles couldn't be around and that he really didn't want anyone else besides Stiles helping to fix up the loft and the building...

The days, weeks and months flew by.. Stiles came by the loft whenever he could and helped Derek with whatever project Dereks was working on at the time, whether it be a sunroom with a hot tub or a Rec Room with an obligatory pool table and dart board and sometimes, Stiles would haul Derek out of the loft and over to Magda's where Magda would fuss over Stiles and Derek and feed both of them till they were fit to burst and then send them on their ways with baskets filled with even more food..

Daisy grew from tiny ball of fluff to sleek majestic predator that had savaged many a jingling cat toys..

When Stiles was in his Junior Year of Highschool he was helping Derek with making a rooftop garden as Magda's rooftop garden had always made Derek want to do something similar every time he went over to her house and one day Stiles had said "Then why don't you do it?.. We could hit up a gardening store on the way home.".. Stiles had called Derek's loft home without even meaning to or noticing, but Derek had noticed... And, yeah.. They had ended up at a gardening store... And as they were laying out a bed of dirt for one of the plant beds, Stiles had said "I think I'm gonna tell my dad about the whole Werewolf thing.."

"Do what now?" Derek had asked..

"Well.." Stiles said tentatively.. "He's my dad.. And.. It's a pretty big.. Important.. Part of my life.. And while there hasn't been any real trouble with Supernatural stuff for a while now, that might not always last.. And I think he should know.."

"Okay.." Derek stated with a nod.

"Okay?.. Just like that?" Stiles asked.

"Just like that." Derek replied "If you want your dad to know, then okay.."

"Thanks." Stiles said with a bright smile "I was worried you'd argue against it."

"He's your family." Derek stated easily. And that was that.

A week later, Stiles was standing at Derek's door with red-rimmed eyes "He didn't believe me.. He thinks I'm on drugs." it was said with a half-sob/half-laugh because of course the situation was at least just a little funny, because of freaking course he couldn't have, shouldn't have just dropped something like that on his dad without actual visible proof, especially with all the history of lying to his dad (out of necessity) and being a bad son that Stiles had stacked against him, when Stiles had said as much, Derek had shook his head with a vehement "No."... And said "You are not a bad son.. You are the furthest thing from a bad son.."

When Stiles had been about to try to argue, Derek had gently shushed him and said "Who makes sure your dad is taken care of?.. You do.. Who is the fiercist, most loyal, most protective son on this side of the Planet?.. You are.. Your dad couldn't ask for a better son because he already has the BEST son and we're going to go over to your house and I'm gonna prove to your dad that you're telling the truth."

And an hour later, a very pale and very shaky, Sheriff Noah Stilinski knew that his son wasn't on drugs and hadn't been lying...

After Noah found out the truth, he and Stiles finally begain to get closer again.

Scott was still so enamoured with Allison and it was becoming clearer and clearer by the day that Stiles didn't rate as important, that really hardly anyone rated as important to Scott when compared to Allison and Stiles began to drift away from his friendship with Scott.. Yeah, sure they were still "friends" but they were no longer Best Friends and Stiles found himself growing closer to Isaac, Erica and Boyd as he was constantly over at Derek's Loft and soon, Stiles realized he was more Derek's Pack than Scott's so when Scott's eyes turned Alpha Red one day out of the blue and it was revealed that Scott was a True Alpha, Stiles realized that if he had to choose Alphas, he'd pick Derek everytime..

During that Summer, while Stiles was helping Derek put finishing touches on getting the building completely fixed up and decorated or while Stiles was over to just hang out, sometimes Peter would pop in at random, be a snarky asshole for a little while then disappear again for weeks before showing back up.. Eventually Stiles figured out that Peter was lonely and he didn't know his place or purpose in the Pack and might be feeling insecure.. That's how Pack Nights ended up becoming a thing and it was mandatory for Peter, well, for all (Hale) Pack Members, to be there and with Derek's building finally being completely done, that gave Stiles a completely valid reason to keep invading Derek's home each week even after Summer ended..

Eventually Summer drew to a close and school started back up again. Stiles was a Junior now, just one year away from graduation and only three months away from legal adulthood.

Working on renovating and remodeling Derek's loft and building had given Stiles some nice muscles that a lot of people noticed and seemed to appreciate as they commented on how nicely Stiles had grown and filled out during the Summer and he suddenly had people asking him out left and right when only two years ago hardly anyone at Beacon Hills High School even knew his name.

Lydia definitely noticed and took intrest, but Stiles found that his crush on her had disolved over time and while Lydia was suddenly intrested, Stiles suddenly wasn't intrested at all.. At least, not in her and while she was surprised that Stiles no longer carried a torch for her, she got over the rejection and her and Stiles ended up building a strong friendship between them and Lydia ended up starting to hang out at Derek's Loft on Pack Nights until it became natural and she felt just as much like Pack as Erica, Boyd, Isaac and Peter...

It was mid-November and Derek went out to get a turkey and all of the trimmings for Thanksgiving as it was going to be the first holiday at his Loft since havig gotten it all fixed up and decorated completely and all of his Pack was going to be coming, including Stiles and his dad.. As he was driving to the store he passed by a sign that said "Yard Sale" and, well, Derek was curious, he'd always loved it when his mom took him with her to Yard Sales as a kid, she found a lot of antiques that way and had told him that one never knew what sort of hidden treasures they could find at a Yard Sale.. So, feeling curious and nostalgic, Derek took a detour and turned down the street and followed the signs until he found the Yard Sale.

Derek parked his car along the edge of the grass and got out.. He walked around the tables looking at some of the old books and even some of the clothes because there were a few really good pairs of almost new, brand name jeans that might fit him.. He had his arms full of random stuff when he saw a table with nothing but knick-knacks and what-nots on it.. 

Seeing a few red Ceramic Cardinals, Derek smiled and made his way over to the table.. He picked up one of the Red Cardinals and then he saw it.. Towards the far corner of the table.. A little white Ceramic Albatross, it was in a completely different pose than the one Stiles had given him..

Suddenly excited, Derek bought the little bird right away.

Thanksgiving Dinner was huge, with all of the food Derek bought and prepared along with everyone in the Pack bringing at least one dish of food, but several of them actually bringing more than one dish of food and Stiles and his dad bringing four whole baskets full of food that Magda had sent with them.

Everyone sat down and they went around the table saying what all they were thankful for and then they ate and joked around and told funny stories about their lives and talked about fond memories. It was a good day and by the end of the day Derek was full and feeling content, secure and he could feel through the Pack Bonds that his Pack was healthy and strong with his Pack Bond with Stiles, curiously feeling stronger and brighter than the rest.

Two days after Thanksgiving, Stiles showed up at Derek's Loft early on Pack Night with a "So.. I felt something weird the other night.."

Derek looked at Stiles with a raised eyebrow "And?"

"There was like a pull in my chest, and there was this glowing thread.."

"Glowing thread?" Derek asked.

"Well, we have seen weirder."

"You've got a point.. Do you think it was dangerous?"

"No." Stiles hurried to reply "No.. I think.. I.. Think it was coming FROM.. ME.. Like.. A Bond I could see... And the thing is.. That pull in my chest.. the one place that pull wanted me to be.. Was with you.. I know it sounds weird.."

"No.." Derek reassured Stiles.. "That doesn't sound weird.. It sounds like you were feeling the Pack Bond.. It's normal for Pack Members to feel an occassional need or pull to be close to their Alphas.. Although... I've never heard about anyone ever actually being able to see a Pack Bond.."

"I have.." Peter stated as he appeared out of thin air causing Stiles to jump and shout that someone should make him wear a bell.. Then Peter smiled all too smugly like he knew all of the secrets of the Universe before sashaying out of Derek's Loft without elaborating on what he had heard about someone being able to see a Pack Bond.

Stiles and Derek shrugged off Peter's antics as per usual, figuring that it didn't matter why Stiles could see the Pack Bond, so long as it was nothing dangerous.

Stiles and Derek ended up binge watching stuff on Netflix with Stiles' sock covered toes tucked up under Derek's leg.

Soon, December came and with it Christmas and for the first time since his family died, Derek was looking forward to celebrating.

The entire Pack joined Derek at his Loft, each bringing food, there was a feast that rivaled the bounty they had all had on Thanksgiving.

The thing that Derek looked forward to the most was the gift giving.

Derek fidgeted nervously as Stiles held a small wrapped box that contained the present from him.

Stiles untied the ribbon and pulled the paper away.

Derek held out his hands with a sudden outburst of "Careful.. It's breakable."

Stiles arched an eyebrow at him and pulled the top off of the small box..

"Oh my god!" Stiles exclaimed "Is this?.."

"Oh wow.. A Ceramic Bird.." Noah said "That's just like the ones your mom used to collect."

"I know.. I think this is the Mate to the Albatross, it's the last piece that mom was missing from her collection." Stiles said as he looked up at Derek with happy tears in his eyes. "Thank you, Derek, I love it."

Noah's eyes were also a bit misty as he asked "Can I see it?"

Stiles went over to his dad and the two Stilinski men bent their heads over the little Ceramic Bird and whispering things they remembered about Claudia and how Stiles used to play with Claudia's Ceramic Bird collection as a little kid and then Noah let out a small disappointed sound as he said "Oh, Stiles.. I'm so sorry, but this bird isn't the one your mom was missing.. It's another Female Albatross.. It's made by the same makers.. But it's from a different set."

"Oh.." Stiles said "Well.. That's okay, she can still be the other Albatross' Mate.. That way neither of them have to be alone." With this, Stiles looked to Derek and it was like both of their Universes clicked into place like two pieces of a puzzle fitting together.

A corner of Stiles' mouth crooked upwards, while Derek simply looked honestly a little bashful.. But, yeah.. They were both on the same page.

The day after Christmas, Stiles was at Derek's doorstep with a tentative "We should go out sometime."

Derek grinned "We go out all the time."

"I meant like on a date." Stiles replied with a fond huff of mock annoyance.

"Magda's doesn't count?" Derek teased.

"Not as a date, dude, ohmygod, she's like a grandma to me!"

Some would say that the way to a man's heart was through his stomach, the way to Stiles' heart were through Comic Book Movies and the way to Derek's heart, as sappy as it sounds, was through making Stiles happy..

After dates to see every single one of the Chris Nolan Batman Trilogy and the Man Of Steel movie.. After several dates of burgers, shakes and curly fries.. After a few fancy dinners and romantic picnics.. Stiles and Derek were ready.. Ready for the next steps. Stiles was over eighteen and out of high school he was taking Criminal Justice courses at the local Community College and Interning at The Sheriff's Office so that he could still live his dreams of one day qualifying to become an FBI Agent but wouldn't have to leave his home town just yet .. And Derek.. Derek had reached a place where touching was something that brought comfort and didn't feel like an obligation.. He had eventually realized how badly Kate Argent has messed him up ans had sought Counseling and now he was healing. The thing was.. As ready as Stiles and Derek were.. Well.. Stiles was still a virgin in every single way and Derek had never been with another man.. Neither Stiles nor Derek trusted the Internet with informing them about something so intimate.. So.. Beet red .. And embarrassed as hell.. Stiles asked the one person he knew who had actual Medical Knowledge. Melissa McCall didn't laugh, didn't judge, didn't try to push her opinions on them.. She was professional and informative as she loaded them both down with bags full of bottles of lubricants, boxes of condoms (yes, even if they're both clean and Werewolves can't get it pass any sort of STD, Melissa was adamant that whoever was going to be topping wear a condemn), enema kits, gloves and explained in a very no-nonsense way how anal sex worked and how to best be prepared beforehand and how to look for any tearing or prolapse so that they could best take care of each other and themselves afterwards .. It took a few days for Stiles and Derek to work themselves back up to being in any sort of mood for trying anything close to sexual because every time they would think about sex they would think about how they knew about how to have sex and how they knew what all they needed and how they got what all they needed.. Having Stiles' friend's MOM teach them and give them supplies had really put a dampner on "the mood".. When it did happen.. It happened naturally.. Stiles and Derek alone in Derek's Loft led to making out and making out led to.. Stiles blushing crimson as Derek stripped them both out of their clothes.. Derek gently laying Stiles back onto the soft bed and used a pillow to elevate Stiles' hips to make it easier on Stiles .. Derek licking around Stiles' rim as he worked a finger into the tight whirl of muscle.. There were generous amounts lube used as Derek slowly and gently worked a second finger into the tight hole. Once Stiles was opened up enough, Derek slipped a condemn over his length and took his time sliding into Stiles' depths making sure that Stiles had enough time to adjust every time more of his length and girth breached deeper. Stiles was moaning and curling his toes into the sheet below him as Derek found his prostate. Soon they began moving.. Together as one.. taking one another to the height of a thrill before they crashed down into their climaxes, shivering, shaking apart.. Breathless.. When they both caught their breaths they cuddled into each other, chest to chest.. After a little while, Derek removed the condem and tossed it into the trashcan beside the bed. They both gave breathless yet elated laughs then began kissing. They both knew that this was a "for the rest of their lives" thing.. Just neither one knew how to say that to the other.. How to ask that of the other.. That next Christmas, Stiles gave Derek a small, hand woven nest filled with four fake tiny eggs .. "To go with the Albatross Mates." Stiles had said.. But upon further inspection... The four fake tiny eggs weren't they only things in the nest. In the center of the fake clutch of eggs was a silver ring with a ruby set into the metal band. Stiles smiled sheepishly as Derek held up the ring with a raised eyebrow.. Then Stiles sunk down on one knee.. If Stiles could be brave enough to ask what Derek had been afraid to ask for a while now.. Well.. Derek was going to have to be brave enough to tell the Sheriff, a man with only one gun but a lot of bullets, that he, Derek Hale was gonna marry his boy. ..


End file.
